Child Of War
by ScifigeekET
Summary: Digitalians and Humans just don't get along.
1. Couldn't Have Known

I'm the Doctor. What's your name?

The words, repeated a thousand times, and yet they'd never held more meaning than this single time, spoken to the Digitalian girl, the Child of War.

The Doctor couldn't have known how he changed her life. How her terror in the moments that he spoke to her would bring forth a realization that could change Digitalia forever, that could change her entire race.

He couldn't have known that this Child of War could bring the human invaders to their knees. He couldn't have known that this young girl could save Digitalia.

He couldn't have known.

* * *

The TARDIS rasped into life, materializing on yet another planet that The Doctor had randomly decided to poke his nose into.

A tall, thin man with wild brown hair ran out of the TARDIS. The Doctor. A wild grin crossed his face.

But it disappeared quickly.

The planet was quiet. Still. The wind gently blew ash and dust in swirling clouds around him. It was the sight of a world hit by war.

And, standing in the ruins, was a small child.

She was about twelve years old. She had long, black hair that hung down to her waist. Brilliant blue eyes stared at him, wide with shock and fear.

And, though hidden well, a layer of hate.

The Doctor raised his hands, almost surrendering. He had no wish to frighten this young girl.

He smiled carefully as he walked slowly towards her. Her face grew more terrified with every step he took.

"Hello." He said, keeping his tone gentle. "I'm The Doctor. What's your name?"

The girl looked at him, pure terror in her eyes. She hurriedly clawed at something around her neck, and handed it to him, still attached.

The Doctor looked at the small necklace. She was holding two small, metal plates. They had some type of writing on them.

Carefully, slowly, he picked up the plates and read them out loud.

"Turquoise." He smiled. "That's a pretty name."

She shivered in response.

He continued to read. "Species: Digitalian. Number: 43821." He looked at the next tag, and his eyes hardened. "Child of the War."

She shivered again.

"OI!" A loud voice called out. The Doctor whirled around.

A tall man came up behind The Doctor. He had red hair, flecked with grey. Dark, blazing amber eyes burned as they glared at the small girl next to him.

More importantly, he was carrying a gun.

The Doctor's hearts sank as he looked at the weapon. Dark fury and hate burned in his eyes.

Then the man did something unexpected. He marched right up to the little girl and pointed his gun at her head. "Where are your tags, FREAK?"

The girl, who had already been terrified, looked about on the point of collapse. She desperately began clawing at the necklace she'd given The Doctor, this time pulling it off her neck completely and handing it to the man.

He looked at them for a while, before nodding slowly. "Child of the War…" He handed them back to her. "Get out of my sight." He spat.

The girl was more than happy to do as he'd asked. She ran away and disappeared into the shadows of the ruined buildings.

The man spat out his disgust. "Digitalians. We should've gotten rid of them all." He looked at The Doctor, and raised his gun. "And now for you."

The Doctor's eyes were cold. "There was no reason for that." His voice darkened with each word.

The man laughed. "You have no idea what you're talking about." His eyes darkened. "You haven't seen what those creatures can do. Now." The gun rose again. "Where's your identification?"

Fury darkened The Doctor's eyes like a shadow. He pulled out his Physic Paper and held it in front of the man's face. "Happy now?" He spat.

The man looked at the paper for a long time. Finally, he nodded slowly. "Sent from Earth, eh? No wonder you're so sympathetic to those freaks." He rolled his eyes, turned around, and gestured for The Doctor to follow.

The Doctor looked for the small girl, but couldn't see her. He had no other choice. With a heavy sigh, he followed the man.

* * *

In the shadow of the ruined building, the girl watched The Doctor walk away.

He was the only human who'd ever spoken to her like… like…

Like an equal.

It was unheard of. Humans and Digitalians couldn't get along. It was impossible. There had been so much fighting, so much pain, the war, the never-ending war…

Painful memories washed over her. Memories of lives lost, her family crying, the cities burning…

She tried to push away the dark memories. Remembering the past did not help with what was happening NOW.

_Save me!_

"No…" She whispered, her voice cracking. "NO! LEAVE ME ALONE!" She cried, her hands striking out at an invisible enemy. "Stop it, stop it!"

Tears fell down her face, and she turned, running away from the ruins. "NO!" She clutched at her head.

She could run. She could hide. But she could not fight. No matter how hard she tried, the memories always found her, always came back to poison her mind.

Two words rang out, over and over.

_Save me!_

The girl collapsed to her knees. "NO! Can't you see? I can't help you! Leave me alone, leave me ALONE!"

She crumpled to the floor, sobbing. "LEAVE ME ALONE!"

* * *

The Doctor couldn't have known what this Child of War was. He couldn't have known how his simple words would change this girl forever. He couldn't have known what she was meant to be.

He couldn't have known.


	2. Shadows of Memory

**A/N: Hmm... not my best work. Had some _serious _writer's block on this. So, be nice. The last part of the chapter is slightly better than the first... Enjoy!**

Digitalia was beautiful. There were no ruins. There was no ash, no dust. No death.

Just beauty.

There was one thing standing in front of her. Standing in the way of the beautiful city that was once her own.

General Rarsok smiled darkly at her. His expression spoke louder than his words ever could. _You want to try it, freak? Go right ahead. You'll never get past ME._

She looked past him, at the beauty of Digitalia.

_SAVE ME!_

She gasped, and everything changed.

The world went black. Dark flames flickered around her. She could feel their heat searing against her skin.

She woke with a gasp.

* * *

The Doctor followed the man (Who introduced himself as General Rarsok) into a camp. Or, at least, it looked like a camp. There were tents everywhere. Men were sitting outside, polishing their guns, reloading them, or simply closing their eyes and taking a nap.

The Doctor's eyes flickered around, catching faint glimpses of people hiding in the shadows. Whenever his eyes would land on them, they'd shrink back into the darkness, as though he scared them more than he could ever imagine.

His eyes darkened, fury blazing in them. "Can you tell me who _they _are?" He hissed.

But Rarsok misunderstood. He looked at the people in the shadows and blew off the Doctor's question with a wave of a hand. "No worries, Doctor. They're meant to be here."

"Why?" the Doctor demanded.

Rarsok shrugged. "They're prisoners, Doctor. Every war has those."

The Doctor's eyes, already dark with rage and fury, now held dark flames. "What war?"

Rarsok looked at him with wide eyes. "Where have you been for the last hundred years? We fought the war, and we won! Plain and simple!"

"The war against who?" The Doctor remembered the tags on the young girl. "The Digitalians?"

Rarsok nodded. "Of course! Who else?"

The Doctor sighed. "Thank you. That's all I needed to know."

His hand went into his pocket, and came out with the sonic screwdriver. A loud, irritating noise swept through the camp, sending many of the humans to the ground, clutching their ears.

"Well. That was easy." The Doctor looked at the Digitalians in the shadows, unaffected by the noise. "What are you waiting for? Run!"

He took off, and was disappointed by the lack of footsteps behind him. He turned around again. "A-hem. What part of 'run' don't you people understand?"

They stared at him with fearful eyes and blank faces.

"Don't just stand there! Move already!"

"They won't listen!" A new voice sounded behind the Doctor. "They're too scared! Let's go!"

He turned to face the speaker, and found a young man with bright eyes.

The Doctor looked at him. "Why not?"

"We don't have time! I promise I'll explain later, but we have to go!"

The Doctor stared at him, shrugged, and started running. The man followed.

* * *

_SAVE ME! _

The girl started to sob. "I can't save you! I can't save anyone, don't you get it! Please! _Please!_"

The Digitalian sighed softly, looking at the girl. "And she's been like this since the war?"

The other nodded. "Yes."

He sighed. "Then there's nothing for it. She will spend her life in this… prison. She can not escape it."

"_PLEASE!" _The girl inside shrieked.

"There has to be another way." The other Digitalian, the one who had found the girl in the first place, spoke again, worry in her voice.

"I'm afraid not." He replied. "She will live this way for the rest of her life." He sighed. "Which I'm not sure is that long, anyway." He handed a small vial to the other Digitalian.

Her eyes widened. "You can not be serious!" She cried out, almost dropping the vial.

"I can. The choice is yours. She has no family, correct?"

She nodded, but her eyes were still locked on the vial. "But we can't just _kill _her."

"It's for the best." He whispered kindly.

"Erm… I beg to differ." A new voice entered the conversation.

The two Digitalians snarled as a human walked towards them, but grudgingly dipped their heads in respect. Well, humans said they dipped their heads. It was closer to a bow.

The man waved it off. "No need for that. All equals here, aren't we?" He grinned.

Their eyes widened as one. No human said the word _equal _around them.

The man held out a hand. "I'm the Doctor, by the way. And you are?"

The two Digitalians exchanged a nervous glance, then replied.

"Eera." One told him. "Human name Sarah."

"Tekal." The other said. "Digitalian doctor, class five. Human name Tom."

"Eera and Tekal. Brilliant." The man grinned wildly.

Eera let out a sharp gasp, and ran towards the Digitalian who had suddenly appeared behind the man. "Ekran! You made it back!"

Ekran nodded. He looked at the human man. "He helped."

Eera's eyes widened. "He… he _helped _you?"

The man, _the_ _Doctor_, kept smiling. "It's what I do."

Eera looked at him. "Impossible!"

"Not impossible! Just… a little… unlikely." He shrugged and walked over to the tent where the small Digitalian girl was still crying out.

"Turquoise?" His astonished voice rang out.

A few snarls erupted from the surrounding Digitalians. "That's a human name, Doctor." Tekal snapped.

He pulled his head out to look at them. "Then what's her real name?"

Eera blushed. "We don't know."

"Well, then." The Doctor ducked his head back in the tent. Moments later, the screaming stopped.

He came out. "There! Just taking a quick little nap while I try and figure out what happened. Nothing to worry about!"

He pulled out a small device. The Digitalian's immediately identified it as a sonic screwdriver.

"Hmm…" His face became concerned. "Not good. Perhaps there _is _something to worry about."

* * *

The young girl's eyes sparkled in the moonlight. The glow of city lights danced around her, responding to her call.

She gazed into the distance.

And then the fires blazed.

The cloud bloomed from the center of the city. Lethal light blazed out from it, unlike the soft light of the moon. The girl could feel the blazing heat on her skin.

She didn't know how unmistakable that cloud was on other worlds. She didn't know how it was a symbol of raw power and destruction. She didn't know that the fire that blazed through her world had been the torment of thousands of worlds before.

She didn't know what the mushroom cloud meant.

She just knew it was there.

And, suddenly, she was in that city. She was in the building, waiting for the cloud to pass.

But the force of the blast, though it's heat was not enough to kill her, had knocked someone out of the building.

_Save me! _Her mother cried, holding on to the building. _Please! Save me! _

She extended her hand, but her tiny fingers were too weak, too fragile as they locked with her mother's.

Her mother's blue eyes locked on hers. _Save me!_

"I can't!" she cried. "Mom, I can't…!"

She nodded once, slowly. The fall to the ground below would send her into the heart of the burning bomb. But these buildings could protect them. The girl didn't know how, but they could.

A tear fell down her mother's eyes. _You are so powerful. You don't even know it._

And the girl's fingers lost their grip, sending her mother into the flames below.

Darkness enveloped her, only the light of the fading moon enabling her to see. A dark, horrible shadow stood in front of her, blazing her mother's words into the deepest corners of her mind, echoing in the darkness there.

_Save me!_

* * *

"There's something in there." The Doctor carefully brushed the girl's hair aside. "In her mind."

"It's the space madness, Doctor." Tekal replied. "There is no cure. No escape. Only death."

The Doctor's eyes burned with an unnamable fury. "That's never a cure. Never an escape." His eyes, burning with all the battles of time itself, locked on Tekal's. "Never an _option._" He turned back to the girl.

Tekal decided not to speak of that again.

"Besides. You're 'space madness' isn't really a disease. It's a combination of life forms on a biomatrix, grafted into the brain deep within the child's mind. Her entire subconscious has been taken, and her conscience will be next."

"Meaning?"

"It's a parasite." The Doctor replied, his eyes dark. "Some creature has taken this child under its control. And she's trying to fight back." He glared at Tekal. "Not a disease. These are the only people who can _fight. _And you're giving the parasite exactly what it wants. You're _killing _those who can fight back, so they can prey on those weaker than them."

Tekal's eyes were wide. "Doctor, these are serious accusations that are based on slight evidence gathered from a _screwdriver. _And a _sonic _one at that."

"Don't knock the screwdriver." The Doctor growled. He stood to face Tekal. "And, I've been alive for 904 _earth years._That's _three thousand _Digitalian ones.I think I have _some _knowledge of diseases and parasites, thank you very much."

Tekal looked at him, his eyes narrowed. "Impossible! Even with life extensions, the average human life span is…"

"I'm _not _human." The Doctor snarled. "Understood?"

Tekal looked at the Doctor's face, his blazing, furious eyes, and realized that it was probably a good idea not to talk _at all. _He kept his mouth shut.

"Doctor…" Eera's voice whispered behind them. The Doctor looked at her. Her eyes were locked on the child.

The child who was now awake.

Her eyes were wide open, unblinking. Her pale skin glistened with sweat, and dark circles ringed her bright eyes. She was breathing heavily, as though each breath was a struggle, a horrible crime against her. Her eyes flickered slightly as they landed on the Doctor, never staying still.

And then she spoke.

Her voice was not her own. It belonged to different people, as though she was playing back a recording. The Doctor felt a shiver run down his spine as the words brought back old memories.

"_The Bad Wolf rises…_

_Calling Torchwood, all units, STAND DOWN!_

_Vote Harold Saxon! Saxon is your man!_

_The Bees are disappearing… The darkness will fall…"_

Suddenly, her eyes stopped flickering, locking on The Doctor's, completely motionless.

"_And he will knock four times." _She whispered.

The Doctor's breath caught in his throat.

The child's eyes snapped shut.

* * *

"What did all that mean?" Eera asked Tekal on the way back to the camp.

"I don't know." He replied.

"Whatever it was," Ekran broke in. "The Doctor seemed to take it very seriously. I can't believe he's staying with her."

Tekal's eyes were dark. "He's going to be in for a shock."

Eera felt a shiver run down her spine at the look on his face. "What do you mean?"

"No one who was near those with the space madness has ever made it out without the disease taking over their minds. Especially at night. He'll be just as crazy as she is next time we see him."

* * *

The Doctor placed his hand on the shivering girl's forehead. Sweat glistened on her skin, and her breathing was harsh.

"Save me." She whispered carefully in her sleep

"I'm trying." The Doctor replied softly. "I'm trying."

* * *

The Doctor hadn't meant to fall asleep.

In fact, there were many reasons the Doctor _never _slept. First, it was a waste of time. He had more important things to do.

Second, he'd done it once or twice. It was downright _boring_.

Third, there were the dreams to think about. The nightmares born from his past, from the darkest corners of his mind.

But as the darkness surrounded him, The Doctor knew that he was dreaming.

He licked a finger and held it up. "Hmm… well, that isn't good."

He tried to pull out his sonic screwdriver, but his pockets had been sewn up.

"Double not good. Well, time to figure this out the old-fashioned way!"

He dropped to the ground, placing his ear against the floor. "That. Is. Interesting."

"You shouldn't be here!"

The Doctor leapt to his feet and spun around to face the little Digitalian girl. Her eyes were blazing.

"Oh? Why not?" he asked her.

"This is MY mind!" She spat back. "Not yours!"

One eyebrow shot up. He didn't think he'd entered her mind. But then, who knew? He hadn't realized he'd fallen asleep, either.

He raised a hand, surrendering. "I didn't mean to. I'm sorry."

Her eyes narrowed. "What's your name?" She demanded.

"I'm the Doctor." He replied. "You?"

"Delta. Delta 12."

He smiled. So, the mystery girl had a real name now. "Well, Delta 12. Do you have any idea what's going on?"

Her shoulders sagged, and The Doctor realized her 'tough' act was exactly that. An act. "No. I wish I did."

He came closer to her, slowly. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "It'll be ok." He whispered.

"**No, Doctor. It will never be ok.**"

The Doctor whirled around to face the speaker, keeping Delta 12 behind him protectively.

It was a shadow. A dark, horrible shadow. No eyes, no true form.

Just darkness.

Delta 12 whimpered.

"**Why would you give her false hope?**" The shadow's voice echoed around them. "**Why would you tell her a lie?**"

The Doctor wasn't in the mood for games. "It's no lie." He snapped. "I wouldn't tell her that if I didn't believe it."

The shadow's head tilted to one side. "**Time Lord!**"

The Doctor looked at it.

"**Of course! It all makes sense now! You're a **_**Time Lord!**_"

"What does that have to do with anything?" The Doctor demanded.

"**Everything, Doctor! Absolutely everything! These Digitalians are **_**weak **_**compared to **_**you!**_"

"I am not weak!" Delta 12 snarled, stepping in front of the Doctor.

"**Please!**" The shadow snorted. "**You couldn't even save**_** her!**_"

Delta 12's eyes widened. "That… that wasn't my…"

"Who is 'her'?" The Doctor asked, oblivious.

Tears ran down the Digitalian's face.

"Delta? Delta, who is 'her'?" The Doctor knelt down in front of the little girl, his eyes locking on hers.

She didn't answer.

"**Tread carefully, Time Lord, for this child is not what she seems." **The Shadow spoke again.

"I don't know what you mean, and quite honestly, I'm not interested." The Doctor whirled on the shadow.

"**I mean that Digitalia has someone to even the odds."**

The Doctor woke with a sharp gasp.


	3. My Darkness

Delta 12 glared at the shadow. "You can't keep _doing _that!" She hissed.

It regarded her calmly. "**Why not, child? The Time Lord has discovered us now. Is that not what you want? To be saved?"**

"I do not call _this _being saved." She snapped back. "I call it using me for your own gain!"

The creature knelt down next to her. It was at eye level with her, or would have been if it had eyes. "**I promise you, Child of War. If this Time Lord accepts me, I will leave you forever. You will be free."**

She swallowed. "But… but you can't! No! You're here for a reason! You have to be!"

"**And what reason is that, Delta? Do you know? Do you **_**remember?**_"

She looked at the shadow with wide eyes. "I…I have to… I remember… I have to _remember…_"

"**But do you remember**_** now?**_**" **The shadow demanded.

She looked at it, unable to speak.

A chuckle sounded from the creature. "**I thought not. You're **_**weak, **_**Delta 12. You can't stop me. You couldn't even save the ones you love. You can do **_**nothing.**_**"**

It disappeared in a cloud of thick, choking smoke, leaving behind a few final, echoing words.

"**You're a **_**joke**_**, Delta 12! That's all you ever were, and it's all you ever shall **_**be!**_**"**

* * *

"Save me!"

The child screamed in the moonlight, lashing out at invisible enemies.

The Doctor was darting about madly, trying to keep her temperature down while scanning her with his sonic screwdriver, every so often glancing at the open physic paper on the table, and assembling something that looked suspiciously like a coffee pot. Perhaps this was because it _was _a coffee pot, and he'd been disassembling and reassembling it into something different for the past three hours, but hadn't gotten very far as he was still desperately trying to help the young Digitalian.

"_Save me! Save me!_" Her cries were frantic. Tears were streaming down her face, and she let out a blood-curdling shriek that sent shivers down the Time Lord's spine.

"I'm trying, I'm trying!" The Doctor was crying as he darted around the young girl. "Give me time!"

Suddenly, her hand gripped his sleeve in an iron-strong grip. Her eyes locked on his. "Save _her._"

His eyes widened. "Delta 12, who is 'her'?"

But her hand loosened, and the child spoke no more.

* * *

Eera was chewing her nails, nervously flickering back and forth from reality and the digital world.

"Eera, stop that. You're freaking me out." Ekran scolded.

She swallowed and remained solid. "Sorry. I'm just a little… nervous. I don't like this. I don't like it at all."

"Calm down, Eera." Tekal snapped. He was more than a little irritable about what had happened yesterday. "What do you think he's going to do? Jump out of the shadows and say 'boo'?"

"Boo." The Doctor appeared behind them.

Eera jumped and swore in about five different languages.

The Doctor grinned. "Sorry. You offered the challenge, and I just couldn't resist."

"And what of the _child, _Doctor?" Tekal demanded. "What's happening to _her _as you stand around playing your jokes?"

The Doctor's expression hardened. "The child is _dead, _if you must know." Fury blazed in his eyes.

Eera took a step back. "No!" she breathed.

The Doctor nodded darkly. "Or, at least, she _should _be dead. She has no heartbeat, not even a Digitalian one. And yet…"

The child appeared behind him suddenly, walking towards him and taking his hand. "Hello, Doctor." She said.

He smiled and knelt down next to her. "Hello, sweetheart. Have a good night's sleep?"

She nodded, grinning. "Yes. I had the most wonderful dreams…" her eyes glazed, as though she could see something the others could not.

Eera looked at the child with wide eyes.

"What did you dream?" The Doctor asked.

"I…I don't…" her eyebrows twisted in confusion. She looked at him. "I don't remember."

He smiled. "That's always the way with dreams." His eyes landed on a bench a short distance away. "Listen, I need to talk with the others right now. You think you could wait over there for a minute?"

She looked at the bench, smiled, and nodded before skipping over to it.

The Doctor stood up straight. "You see what I mean."

"How in the universe…?" Tekal's eyes were wide.

"Strange, isn't it?" The Doctor asked. "She _seems _fine, but if you take a pulse, you have a completely different analysis. And, of course, there is the parasite to think of…" He trailed off. "I wonder…"

"But she's fine now!" Eera protested. "She's better! We can take her home! She can live a normal life!"

"I don't think it's quite that simple." The Doctor replied.

"Well, for that matter, how in the universe did _you _make it out?" Tekal demanded suddenly.

The Doctor shrugged. "Parasites can't exactly make a home in my brain." He replied with a dark smile.

"Shut up, Tekal." Ekran blurted. "We don't need to know about _him_. We need to know about _her._"

The Doctor smiled. "Thank you! Now! Something has taken over that child's mind. The problem is taking it out without harming Delta."

"Delta?" Eera asked. "Who is Delta?"

"Delta 12. The child." The Doctor replied. "That's her name."

Shocked snarls filled the area.

"Impossible! Delta 12 is dead!" Eera exclaimed, eyes wide.

"They're all extinct! Every last one of them!" Ekran continued, his eyes even wider than hers.

Tekal was swearing in every language he knew. "Impossible! _Impossible!"_

Eera was backing away from the child. "You're on your own, Doctor." She continued. "This child is not what she seems."

Ekran had already run away. Tekal was trying to pull something out of his pocket, and Eera looked like she was about to join Ekran.

"Why? What happened?" The Doctor demanded.

But Eera was gone.

"Tekal! What happened?"

Tekal didn't answer. He finally managed to pull something out of his pocket.

It was a gun.

The Doctor raced over and twisted the man's hand until he was forced to drop the weapon.

"Tekal, what happened?" He roared in the Digitalian's face.

"Let go of me, Doctor!" Tekal spat. "Let go!"

But the Doctor refused. "What happened?" He demanded again.

But Tekal's eyes were locked on Delta 12. "Never again." He whispered, his face pale. "Never again! Keep that _infestation _out!"

He wrenched his hand away from the Doctor, and ran.

* * *

"They never liked the Delta family."

Delta 12 felt the words escape from her lips once again.

_Stop this! _She screamed to the creature in her mind. _Stop this now! You're killing me! You're _killing_ me!_

But the creature didn't seem to care. "I never knew why, Doctor. They just don't like us." Delta's lower lip jutted out.

_I know why, Doctor! Oh, please! Just _listen _to me! _Please!

The Doctor carefully took the little girl's hand. "Well, we'll show them, won't we?" He asked.

Delta 12's body nodded, though the girl was really screaming in protest.

* * *

The Doctor looked at the child. "Delta, I need you to keep still for a minute, all right?"

She shrugged. "Sure."

He looked at her. "I need to check something in your mind. If there's something you don't want me to see, just imagine a door, and close it, ok?"

She nodded.

The Doctor carefully placed his hands on her face, closed his eyes, and concentrated.

* * *

"Doctor!" Delta 12 raced to the Time Lord's side.

"Delta!" he cried, coming over to her. "Where are we?"

"Where else?" She shot back. "My mind."

"**You should not have come there, Doctor!**" The shadow appeared in front of him.

"Too bad!" the Doctor snapped back. "I'm here now!"

"**You can not save her! It is impossible!"**

"Then it's a good thing I'm here, because impossible is my specialty."

The shadow glared at him as best as a faceless shadow could. "**Tread carefully, Time Lord. This is where I rule. The Child's mind is mine to command."**

"You really think I'm going to let _that _one pass?" The Doctor snarled.

"**You can do nothing, Doctor! Stop pretending that you can!"**

"I'm not pretending _anything!_" He spat. "You _will leave this child's mind!"_

The shadow chuckled. **"How far would you go to get me to leave?"**

The Doctor took a step back. He let the words sink in for a minute.

Suddenly, he chuckled. It was a dark laugh, something brought forth from nightmares. "So _that's _it. _That's it!_" He laughed again. "You want a trade. Me for her."

"**You are stronger than even her, Doctor.**" There was no shame in the shadow's echoing boom of a voice.

"Yes, well. Strength isn't always a good thing."

Delta grabbed The Doctor's shirt sleeve. "No!" She cried. "Doctor, he'll kill you! He has to stay _here!_"

"Why?" The Doctor looked at the Digitalian child.

She looked back with wide eyes. "I don't know. Just… trust me! It has to stay!"

"**Well, Doctor? What do you say?"** The shadow extended one dark hand.

The Doctor looked at it for a long time, his gaze shifting back and forth from Delta 12 and the hand.

"Don't, Doctor." Delta whimpered. "Don't do it."

The Doctor sighed.

And took the shadow's hand.

* * *

"No!"

Delta 12 shrieked as loud as she could.

And then she remembered.

Her eyes lit up at the realization. The shadow was being lifted from her mind, traveling to the Doctor's.

And she remembered why she didn't want the shadow to leave.

She screeched as loudly as she could. Light started dancing around her.

"_You shall not take the Shadow from me, Doctor!_" She cried, her words echoing. "_This is _my _war! _My _nightmare! _My _DARKNESS!"_

The shadow retreated away from The Doctor, coming around the child once more. She screamed, tears flowing from her eyes.

"I couldn't save you!" She cried. "I couldn't save anyone!"

The Doctor stared in wonder as the shadow let out a screech that made his blood run cold. Images of war and death and pain flashed through his mind.

And he woke up.

In the world not made of dreams, Delta 12 was back to her original state, screaming at the top of her lungs. A pale glistening of sweat coated her skin.

The triple-moonlight told The Doctor that it was nighttime already. He hurriedly pulled out his sonic screwdriver. "This isn't good. This isn't good. _This isn't good."_

He hurriedly tried to stabilize her condition once more. She was shaking, screaming, panting. Her eyes were open. They were watery, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Save her!" Delta screamed. "Please, save her!"

She lashed out at an invisible enemy. Suddenly, she was on her feet, in an all-out war with someone The Doctor could not see.

* * *

"No!" Delta 12 shrieked. "You are _not _to transfer to anyone else! This is _my war!_"

The shadow backed away from her. She was no longer the terrified little girl. This child radiated power, strength.

Hate burned in her bright eyes as she lashed out at the shadow, which was trying to smother her in darkness once more. The light danced around her.

"If I have to die so that you never escape…" She snarled. "Then I shall _die._"

The Shadow took a step back, and another. "**You are mine, Child of War. Not the other way around**."

She glared at it as the darkness covered her at last. "Yes. And you shall never leave."

And she gave into the darkness.

* * *

Delta's body collapsed to the ground. Her eyes snapped closed, and her breathing steadied. The Doctor felt that she'd lost a war, a battle that had to be fought.

He stood. She'd be unconscious for at least another three or four hours. He carefully took her back into the tent.

He sighed. This would end now.

And he started to walk to the Digitalian city.

* * *

"Tekal!" The Doctor walked up to the Digitalian. He wasn't in the mood for games, so he grasped Tekal's wrist tightly.

"What happened with Delta 12?" He roared.

Eera appeared behind him, wrapping her arms around his throat. "Let him go!"

"No!" The Doctor whirled to face her. "All I know is that I see a very terrified, very small girl who is _sick._ I want to know _why _her own _people _refuse to _help her._"

Tekal snarled, trying to wrench his hand away from The Doctor. "You don't know _what _she is!"

"Who!" The Doctor snapped. "She is a living, breathing, Digitalian, she's not some _freak!_"

"You know nothing!" Eera hissed as she kept trying to force him to release Tekal.

"Then _tell me!_"

"Fine!" Eera let go of the Doctor. "Just let Tekal go!"

The Doctor obeyed. "What happened?" He questioned.

Eera sighed. "It was a long time ago, Doctor. Many here did not witness it." She looked down. "But to understand, you first must know about us…"


	4. Delta 12

"There were always five of us." Eera explained. "Five different types of Digitalians, each with an ability others did not have, or, at least, not as strong. Alphas were the strongest, Betas the smartest, and Gamma's the fastest. But there were two with stronger abilities. Deltas and Zetas."

"I'm a Beta." Tekal said. "Most Betas become doctors or scientists. Ekran is an Alpha, and Eera a Zeta."

Eera nodded. "Zetas could 'phase' between reality and the digital world surrounding us." She swallowed. "The planet is connected with computer systems, allowing Zetas to pass within data streams undetected."

"And Deltas?" The Doctor asked.

"Deltas were… different."

"How?"

She sighed. "Deltas are able to access any type of technology. _Any type._ Codes didn't matter. The human's weapons would be trash." Her eyes narrowed. "But the Deltas refused to help."

"You see, Doctor, human weapons can rarely affect us." Tekal explained. "Nuclear bombs were nothing, especially to Zetas. How can you hurt a data stream?" He sighed. "But there was a problem. The humans took over the computer systems. Take those, and Digitalians are defenseless, completely at the mercy of the others." He sighed. "Many of the Deltas _did _try, and we gave them credit for that. But others thought it wasn't right. A civil war broke out. It was complete and utter genocide."

The Doctor's eyes turned to steel.

"But that wasn't all." Eera continued. She swallowed, her voice barely a whisper. "There was something else. Known as the Twelve Series." She looked down. "We had to destroy them all. They were too powerful, and, to be honest, mad. They all went insane with their own power, destroying entire cities in a single fit of rage. No cage could contain them. There was no other option." She sighed. "So we took the last option. We destroyed them before the war."

"You committed genocide _again._" The Doctor's voice was filled with razors.

"Actually, that was the first time." Tekal pointed out coldly. "What happened with the Deltas happened afterwards, when the war started."

"We had no idea if there were any Deltas left." Eera said. "If there were, they were in hiding." She sighed. "But none of the Twelve Series survived. They couldn't have."

"And yet," The Doctor intervened. "There is a young girl named Delta 12 out there, screaming for someone to save her."

"It's not the space madness, Doctor." Tekal said. "It's not a parasite. She's suffering the fate of all the Twelve Series." He cleared his throat. "You see, The Twelve Series always had one additional ability. There was once a Zeta 12, who had the capabilities of a Delta and the mind of a Beta. One Gamma 12 had the phasing abilities of a Zeta. It all depended on the person." He swallowed. "But they all become murderers in the end. They all go insane. And this… Delta 12… will be next."

* * *

Delta 12 allowed the darkness to swallow her as she lay down on the floor. The shadow danced around her, suddenly desperate to be free.

"Why do you wish to leave?" She asked quietly. "You have the life you always wanted…"

The Shadow surrounded her. "**You're insane, Child of War. This world will not accept you.**"

Tears flowed from the small girl's eyes. "I thought you'd be a little more supportive than that." She laughed bitterly. "That parasite changed you. Made you into it."

"**You're wrong. It only made me stronger."**

But there was something in the Shadow's voice. The faintest flicker of doubt. Its words shook slightly as it spoke.

"**Why do you keep asking these questions? Can't you just accept what has happened?"**

Delta 12 turned to face it. "Could you?"

**"I've already accepted it."**

Her eyes narrowed. "Then say my name."

The Shadow was stunned by her request, taking a single step backwards. "**What?**"

"You heard me. Say my name. Don't mock me; don't say I'm a joke. Just say my name." Delta 12 was suddenly on her feet, her eyes locked on the shadow, a hideous fury blazing in them. "Say my name. Tell me you loved me, like you always did before this thing took over. Talk about the days before the war, this war that's been going on for a hundred years. Tell me why I haven't aged a day since it began." Tears pricked the child's eyes. "_Say my name!_"

"**I've said it before, Child of War…"**

"_No!_" Delta 12 shrieked. "Don't call me child, or Child of War, or anything but _my name!_"

"**Why?"**

Delta 12 looked at her. "Tell me she's still in there." She whispered. The tears had found their way down her face.

The shadow looked at her for a long time.

But it had no answer. In a wave of darkness, it disappeared.

"I thought so." Delta 12 whispered. She sighed, sat down, and curled up into a ball on the ground again.

* * *

The Doctor came up to the child, who was still asleep. Tekal had pressed a vial of poison into The Doctor's hand, telling him it was for the best. The Doctor had shattered the vial the first chance he got.

He quickly reviewed everything he knew. First, Delta 12 was the last of two different species, the Deltas and the Twelve Series. He wasn't about to commit double genocide for the sake of one Digitalian doctor.

Second, she was still unconscious, which meant the battle wasn't over yet.

Third, he was going to have to get her away from this planet. Find her a different home.

Fourth, he was going to have to _cure _her before he could do that. She had some sort of parasite inside her mind, no matter what Tekal said.

Fifth, Tekal was probably wrong. Most likely, all of the Twelve Series had this parasite.

So what _was _it?

The Shadow. It had to be. That Shadow had infiltrated the child's mind; had gone so far as to call it its own.

"Well, Shadow." The Doctor muttered. "You and I are going to need to talk."

He hurriedly walked over to the machine that had once been a coffee pot, twisting wires and pressing buttons, the sonic screwdriver out and buzzing.

This time, the Shadow would be on _his _terms.

* * *

It was noon of the next day by the time The Doctor had finished. The coffee pot now looked much different. More like a deformed, mechanical goose. But it would _work._ And that was all that mattered.

The Doctor pressed a button and aimed the device at the child.

"All right, Shadow." He whispered. "Time for a talk."

* * *

The Shadow let out a blood-curdling shriek as it found itself being taken from the child's mind.

She reached out to take it back, but it was too late. It was gone.

The shadow emerged in the blazing light. It shrieked and hissed its fury and pain, but The Doctor just regarded it calmly.

"Hello." The Doctor said.

The Shadow glared at him. "**What have you **_**done?**_**"**

"No worries. It's only temporary." The Doctor said with a sigh. "Unfortunately for me."

"**What do you want?" **The Shadow hissed.

The Doctor's eyes hardened. "I want to know why you chose her." He replied. "The most powerful Digitalian on the planet, the only one who could _help _them, and you just happen to decide that her mind will make the perfect home."

"**You know nothing about her!" **The Shadow snapped. If it had eyes, The Doctor knew they would be rolling up towards the sky. **"You don't understand!"**

"Then help me understand!" The Doctor shot back.

The Shadow sighed. "**I didn't **_**choose **_**to take over her mind, Doctor. **_**She **_**chose **_**me.**_**" **

"What do you mean?"

"**She's the reason I'm here, Doctor!"**

The Doctor's eyes narrowed. "Explain."

The Shadow stayed silent.

The Doctor sighed and pulled out his sonic screwdriver, aiming it at the Shadow. "Explain." He repeated.

The Shadow sighed. "**We are the reason The Twelves went insane.**"

"I figured as much. But who is 'we'?"

The Shadow looked down. "**Every Twelve lost someone. It didn't matter who, but someone always died. And they had a choice to bring them back. Their mind was preserved in the parasite's body, creating an entirely different creature." **It sighed again. "**But there's a problem. The parasite doesn't have a real body." **

"It needs a host." The Doctor said, understanding.

"**Exactly. We need a body for our minds. And the Twelves were the only option, because we were already inside of their minds. It's how we were created.**"

"And who are you?" The Doctor demanded. "Who did she lose?"

But the Shadow never answered. At that point, The Doctor felt something press into the back of his head.

"It's over, Doctor." He could hear Rarsok's rasping voice behind him. The human general sounded like he was smiling. "You're coming back with all the other traitors."

The Shadow flickered in front of the Doctor, then disappeared in a blast of darkness.

The Doctor turned to face Rarsok, his hands raised, surrendering. But there was fury blazing in his eyes, dark and full of hate.

This had gone on for too long.

And then the unexpected happened.

Delta 12's eyes snapped open. A hideous, nightmarish, blood-curdling shriek escaped from her lips, sending chills down the Doctor's spine. And, in that shriek, she screamed one word.

"_MOM!"_

* * *

The Shadow flickered in the light she was blazing. Slowly, the darkness of the parasite began to fade away, and a young, beautiful woman stood in front of her.

Tears streamed down her cheeks. "Just say my name."

"**I can't." **The former Shadow's voice still echoed.

"Say it!"

"**I have no need to.**"

"Say it! Please! Say my name!"

**"And why should I?" **Her eyes locked on Delta 12's.

"Just say it! Prove to me that you're still in there! _Say it, mom!_"


End file.
